HahnSolo

Figueroa 3.5 Castillo 1 Schneider 1

Seems like every time I turn on the Mets the last month, they're down 4-0.

I was somewhat surprised how close the aughts are to the 80s, then I remembered how bad they were from 80-83. And that '81 was a strike year.

Edwar Ramirez--douche. Comes to the scrum late, then decides he'll be heroic by grabbing the opposing team's catcher--who is at the bottom of a pile--and start pulling him by his catching gear. And I didn't see Shelley Duncan, but like Edgy says, how unsurprising.

A "hotel valet" near Citi Field? Don't they have player parking? And what hotel are we talking about?

Ron Gardenhire for Germany? Not sure of the others.

Carlos played five innings in front of a packed house (many Met fans like me made the last minute pilgrimage). He batted third. Wasn't tested much in center. He went 0-2 with a walk. Had a nice first PA, fouling off a few pitches before walking on a 3-2 pitch. Next AB grounded out weakly to second on the first pitch. Final AB skied to center on I think the second pitch he saw. Cyclones lost on a 2-run rally by Hudson Valley in the bottom of the ninth. This is the first time I saw the Cyclones. I really dislike the red caps, socks and shirts. No Met colors?

Didn't Evans have a really big first game last year, also at Coors Field?

I just want proof that either he, Reyes, or Delgado actually exist. They're mythical in my mind, like the Yeti.

Got an email from the Hudson Valley Renegades that tix for tonight's game with the Cyclones (with Beltran!) were still available. It's actually not a bad place to watch a ballgame. Little Solo actually got on the field the last time we went, when his team was "Baseball Buddies."

Pelphrey didn't get his September off to a good start last night, so that opens the door for the others. Will it be a September to Remember for Nelson Figueroa and his blogging wife? Curious, who are the leaders as of today for player and pitcher of the year? Wright and Santana?

Maybe because he looked funny and ran funny, but I always had a soft spot for Ron Cey.

Great tidbit on Valentine. It's really remarkable that on Sept. 2nd they were still five games out of first, yet they'd go on to win the division by 8 games.

Since June my Schaefer voting has been, well, nonexistent. So thanks to all who keep this up. Yes, Francisco looks pretty depressing at #21, especially considering he's only 4 spots ahead of Wagner, who pitched, what, 3 times?

="metirish":2qv0580b]What should I expect from Misch today?[/quote:2qv0580b] Seven innings, one run. Never saw that coming. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 28 2009 02:24 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 28 2009 02:28 PM Kevin Gregg in with a man on base. Only good can come of this. By the way... In 7 innings, Misch has allowed 5 hits, 2 walks and 1 earned run (with further damage saved by nice defensive play at 2nd), with 2 K in his pocket, in 98 pitches. Ted Lilly's day ends with 7 1/3 pitched, having allowed 5 hits, 2 walks and 1 earned run (with further damage saved by nice defensive play at 2nd), with 2 K in his pocket, in 98 pitches. Yeah, that's right. Your mind is blown. Rockin' Doc Aug 28 2009 02:25 PM Mets at the corners with Francoeur to face Gregg with one out. Time to bust this one open. Benjamin Grimm Aug 28 2009 02:26 PM But Francoeur strikes out. It's up to Tatis. Benjamin Grimm Aug 28 2009 02:26 PM Tatis comes through! A double off Soriano's glove, into the ivy. Drives home one, but the trailing runner is out at the plate, ending the innning. Kong76 Aug 28 2009 02:27 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 28 2009 02:28 PM Did Murphy run through a stop sign there? Swan Swan H Aug 28 2009 02:27 PM And Gregg is up to his Tatis in trouble as Fernando delivers the go-ahead run. Rockin' Doc Aug 28 2009 02:28 PM Frenchy goes down swinging, but Tatis picks him up with a 2 out double to deep left field. Gwreck Aug 28 2009 02:29 PM Hey, look, another runner thrown out at home. Thanks, Razor. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 28 2009 02:30 PM ="Kong76":mlh6zhgx]Did Murphy ran through a stop sign there?[/quote:mlh6zhgx] Razor knows the stop sign? Swan Swan H Aug 28 2009 02:34 PM As part of the Citi Field 'Green' initiative Razor Shines' right arm has been replaced with a windmill. Kong76 Aug 28 2009 02:35 PM I mean he was just SO out. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 28 2009 02:35 PM Stokes? Dammit. Kong76 Aug 28 2009 02:38 PM Running yourself out of an inning is just asking for the ass fuck. Benjamin Grimm Aug 28 2009 02:38 PM No Schaefer for Stokes today. metirish Aug 28 2009 02:39 PM Razor swears he'll do better in the rebroadcast tonight metsguyinmichigan Aug 28 2009 02:39 PM Poor Misch! He deserved so much better than this. metirish Aug 28 2009 02:40 PM ="metsguyinmichigan":26pevuyp]Poor Misch! He deserved so much better than this.[/quote:26pevuyp] Don't forget us....we all deserve better than this LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 28 2009 02:42 PM Well, on the plus side, the fifty Cubs fans in the Wrigley stands actually paying attention to the game just got ultra-happy. So, you know, good for them. metirish Aug 28 2009 02:43 PM It's 5-2 Cubs just in case you didn't know Kong76 Aug 28 2009 02:49 PM Walks are good. Gwreck Aug 28 2009 02:49 PM Leadoff walks: how comebacks are born. Kong76 Aug 28 2009 02:49 PM Gmta Kong76 Aug 28 2009 02:54 PM Oh well, another game another loss. TransMonk Aug 28 2009 02:54 PM I hat baseball. Rockin' Doc Aug 28 2009 03:03 PM After Murphy was thrown out to end the top of the 8th, I went outside to finish my yardwork so I'd have the weekend free. I told myself I could save myself some misery by doing so. I thopught is was better to read about how the team managed to lose the game than to actually witness it as it happened. That is what my expectations have fallen to now that virtually the entire starting lineup is on the DL. The losses no longer hurt, since I've actually come to expect them. Nymr83 Aug 28 2009 03:14 PM ="LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr":h42y48ky]="Kong76":h42y48ky]Did Murphy ran through a stop sign there?[/quote:h42y48ky] Razor knows the stop sign?[/quote:h42y48ky] Q: Razor, do you have a stop sign? A: ::laughs:: thats a good one! ask me another. well, there you have it.

Single, double, walk. Sadly, this might be a career day for Anderson Hernandez.

"Omar Santos out at home on runner's fielder's choice" Someone please 'splain.

Who's that between Jack and Paul?

="smg58":3njsggd4] and Dunn's glove takes away most of what his bat gives [/quote:3njsggd4] I know he's not Keith out there at first, but you don't really believe this, do you? I mean, his bat gives an awful lot. Gwreck Aug 26 2009 02:26 PM The pop-up was on Friday June 12th.. They won convincingly on Saturday but then Sunday the 14th was the game where Johan imploded and they lost 15-0. Then it was losing 2 of 3 to Baltimore and Tampa both. The final game against Tampa was Beltran's last. So if the popup wasn't *exactly* when the season went over the cliff, it was right around that time. Vic Sage Aug 26 2009 03:50 PM a few things: - not that it matters much, but since it was brought up, if someone wants to go thread searching, you'll discover discussions about Delgado in which CF and I thought picking up Delgado's option would be a mistake because, at age 37, he was as likely to repeat his terrible first half from 2008 as he was to continue his excellent 2nd half, and players at that age are more likely to break down; we were, instead, banging the drum for Texiera. I don't recall who else jumped on that bandwagon with us, but there was discussion of it here. And whatever else's Omar's multitude of shortcomings, an inability to land a big fish, even when competing with Yanks and BoSox, is NOT one of them. - saying Delgado was "a senior citizen that broke his hip" is a joke, not an attempt to describe the injury with scientific specificity. - for a guy like Dunn, who is customarily in the top 10 in the NL every year in both runs created and OPS+, to cost his team more runs than he creates with bad defense at 1b, he'd have to be playing the position with NO ARMS AND, INSTEAD, ATTEMPTING TO CATCH THE BALL WITH HIS ASSCHEEKS... which would probably have ended his career at some point, or certainly have caused a massive hemorroidal problem that would've DLed him indefinitely. - The notion that signing Dunn would've been a bad deal because it just would've made this year's lost season more expensive for Fred is logic that just makes my head reel. The fact that the Mets have suffered unpredented level of injuries and, therefore, would've been unlikely to contend this year anyway, should not absolve Omar from his decision-making in building this team. Here are just some of the decisions off the top of my head: * picking up Delgado's option (forgetting the lesson of Carlos Baerga) * counting on Murphy to repeat (forgeting the lesson of Mike Vail) * Re-signing Perez for big $ (forgetting the lesson of, well, Oliver Perez) * Putz was coming off serious arm injury; * Spending big money on not 1, not 2, but 3 closers, when closers are made, not born (and he'd already given away Heath Bell for nothing)(e.g., see Ryan Franklin); * Maine had injuries when we acquired him from Baltimore and had managed 1 full season (2007) in his career, and was coming off a injury-shortened 2008, but was counted on as the #2 starter, along with a rotation of unstable Ollie P, inconsistent Pelfrey and no 5th starter to speak of; * guaranteed contracts to Cora, Redding, Tatis, Marlon Anderson, Duaner Sanchez and Scott Schoenwiese ate up over $9m of 2009 team budget; * poor budget management didn't allow him to make any in-season adjustments to compensate for injuries; ok, i'm bored. i'll stop now. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 26 2009 03:56 PM ="HahnSolo":3sik436d]="smg58":3sik436d] and Dunn's glove takes away most of what his bat gives [/quote:3sik436d] I know he's not Keith out there at first, but you don't really believe this, do you? I mean, his bat gives an awful lot.[/quote:3sik436d] As per Fangraphs, smg's LITERALLY correct: Batting Runs Created, YTD: 38.8 Defensive Runs Saved, YTD: -28.2 (dead last among ML OFs this year) He's still been worth about 2 wins over replacement, and is being paid about what he's been worth ($9.4M, YTD) at market rates. MFS62 Aug 26 2009 04:01 PM Vic, don't be wishy-washy. What do you really think about Omar's decision-making? Later Nymr83 Aug 26 2009 05:28 PM ="Edgy DC":rpl4i1i1] If they saw Dunn only as a firstbaseman, they missed a lot. If they thought Murphy was a better bet in the outfield, so did they miss more. But neither of those are about Delgado.[/quote:rpl4i1i1] Just add on here, Dunn was a perfect fit, he could play the outfield in 2009 and then be moved to 1B when Delgado's contract expired if you felt that was where he belonged, he would have given the Mets flexibility in their 2010 shopping as well! as for "where did it go wrong" i'd point to 3 time periods: 1. offseason: Mets fail to get another bat 2. June: Mets are treading water not falling too far behind, but front office fails to reinforce the team before it can fade 3. July: Team falls apart from cumulative injuries MFS62 Aug 26 2009 05:41 PM If they make a movie of this season, it should be directed by Wes Craven. Later Edgy DC Aug 26 2009 09:32 PM ="Vic Sage":3gzpo6te]- saying Delgado was "a senior citizen that broke his hip" is a joke, not an attempt to describe the injury with scientific specificity.[/quote:3gzpo6te] You miss my more salient point here. Neither had he displayed any particular injury-proneness. The appeal of Texiera is clear. He's younger and more likely to maintain his health and productivity, but let's not distort the case against a good soldier. Edgy DC Aug 26 2009 09:37 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 27 2009 07:14 AM ="Nymr83":1izifb1m]="Edgy DC":1izifb1m] If they saw Dunn only as a firstbaseman, they missed a lot. If they thought Murphy was a better bet in the outfield, so did they miss more. But neither of those are about Delgado.[/quote:1izifb1m] Just add on here, Dunn was a perfect fit, he could play the outfield in 2009 and then be moved to 1B when Delgado's contract expired if you felt that was where he belonged, he would have given the Mets flexibility in their 2010 shopping as well![/quote:1izifb1m] Yeah, yeah. That's what I said pretty much exactly on page one. It's probably what I said over the winter. I certainly thought it. As for reinforcements, I can't imagine a trade --- acknowledging my prejudice ----that could have saved this ship, and I'd hate to think of the price that any half measure would have cost. Working and praying for the health of the disabled players seemed the best and last hope to me. I really wish there was more people on board with this point, but a GM does not particularly show his merit in making dazzling mid-season trades to save a fading campaign. But sportwriters love 'em. metsmarathon Aug 27 2009 06:52 AM i'd love to know what trade could've been made that would've saved the season, aside, perhaps, for trading our broken players for the healthy versions of themselves. and then, of course, the persistent knock against omar that our farm system sucks would truly come to fruition. metirish Aug 27 2009 06:56 AM ="metsmarathon":198kkavf]i'd love to know what trade could've been made that would've saved the season, aside, perhaps, for trading our broken players for the healthy versions of themselves. and then, of course, the persistent knock against omar that our farm system sucks would truly come to fruition.[/quote:198kkavf] It's a good point , the influx of injured players coming back never happened either. Benjamin Grimm Aug 27 2009 06:58 AM Yeah, there's no way that Omar could have traded himself out of this mess. You might argue that he could have done something before the mess became so large, but even if he had, it wouldn't have helped any. It's probably better that he did nothing. It's certainly good that he didn't make any desperation trades. (I do wonder what kinds of deals he was working on.) MFS62 Aug 27 2009 08:54 AM ="metsmarathon"]when they first dug the foundation for citi field, and found those pottery shards, arrowheads, and old indian bones, and still built the damned thing, the die was cast for this season. 'Thon, I mentioned that to a friend who is married to a Native American woman. I asked if there was anything that could be done to reverse a spell. This was his email reply: ]u're on your own on this one....i suggest a sacrifice at home plate...u have enough injured bodies that burning one more at the stake wouldn't make a big diff OK, so, who do we pick? Later metsmarathon Aug 27 2009 09:20 AM allyssa milano... LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 27 2009 01:44 PM ="MFS62"]="metsmarathon"]when they first dug the foundation for citi field, and found those pottery shards, arrowheads, and old indian bones, and still built the damned thing, the die was cast for this season. 'Thon, I mentioned that to a friend who is married to a Native American woman. I asked if there was anything that could be done to reverse a spell. This was his email reply: ]u're on your own on this one....i suggest a sacrifice at home plate...u have enough injured bodies that burning one more at the stake wouldn't make a big diff OK, so, who do we pick? Later Burn Martinez-- JUST MAKE SURE YOU GET THE RIGHT ONE! Nymr83 Aug 27 2009 02:12 PM Shit. I had a whole long post and it got deleted when I accidentally closed the browser. heres the short version: the argument that the Mets were "beyond help" is in my opinion just 20/20 hindsight, there was a period of a month or more after the Delgado injury (which should have been a big "we need help sign") in which all other significant injured players besides Perez were expected back soon and in which the Mets were playing .500 ball and were only a couple of games out. On July 2nd after beating the Pirates in a makeup game the Mets were a game back from both philly and florida. The team wasn't beyond help for that month at least.

On July 2, the Mets scratched out an extra inning win in a makeup game in Pittsburgh. it put them either within 1 or 1 1/2 games of the Phillies. The day is seared in my memory because it's the day my wife got sick. The next night, in CBP, Livan couldn't get anybody out, and the sweep was on. To me, the season ended on that Friday night. And if you want to blame anything on the off-season, I reiterate what some others have said in other threads. Omar bandaged up the problems of last year (bad pen, hole in rotation) without really shoring up the offense or the team's depth.